States Line Up in Favor of Federal Adoption Law

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — This week, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a challenge to longstanding federal law on the adoption of Native American children.

On Tuesday, the court takes up the case of a South Carolina family fighting for custody of their adopted daughter. The couple adopted the girl several years ago, but her biological father argued in court that her mother gave her up without his consent. The state Supreme Court sided with the father — a member of the Cherokee Nation who'd never met the girl. She was returned to him in Oklahoma.

At issue is the Indian Child Welfare Act, a federal law that gives tribes and relatives a say in decisions affecting children with Native American heritage. More than a dozen states have filed briefs supporting the law.